Only 25 of these 75th anniversary Schwinn Paramount frames are being sold.

Whatever you think about the current status of Schwinn the brand, there’s no denying its place in America’s long cycling history. In one form or another the company has been building bikes since 1895. Not all of those bikes have been good — or even average. But there’s no denying the company’s long, and sometimes glorious heritage.

The upside of that heritage is on clear display in an ongoing collaboration between Schwinn and Waterford Precision Cycles, which are building a small batch of stunning limited edition 75th anniversary addition Schwinn Paramount road bike frames. Only 25 of these fully customizable steel steeds are available. Pricing starts at $3,800, and buyers are invited to visit the Waterford factory in Waterford, Wisconsin, for a custom in-person fitting.

Each of the frames comes with limited-edition 75th anniversary lugs, and has options for internal and electronic routing. Multiple decaling and paint options provide the opportunity for personal design touch.

The frame sports specially created stainless steel dropouts with the Paramount compass points.

The lugset created for the 75th Anniversary Paramount reflects the latest thinking in lug engineering, but also pays homage to Paramount lugs from the 60′s and beyond. With the 75th design, Schwinn went to a trimmer design with the compass points cut into the lug.

The $3,800 Paramount Air has polished stainless head lugs and seat lug. One step up, at $4,750, is the Paramount Air Front/Stainless Rear, which has polished stainless head lugs, seat lug and stays. At the top of the line is Paramount Full Stainless ($5,350), which has either full polish or painted main tubes. You can see full pricing details, plus a host of upgrade options here.

The project is being led by Paramount engineering expert Marc Muller, who ran the Schwinn Paramount engineering department in the 1980s, and Richard Schwinn, the great grandson of Schwinn founder Ignaz Schwinn.

“The 75th anniversary design lets us offer 21st century technology while paying homage to the Paramount’s glorious past,” said Schwinn. “We feel honored to be able to celebrate another milestone in the Paramount’s legendary history and to once again be building Schwinn bicycles.”

An avid cyclist, Jason Sumner has been writing about two-wheeled pursuits of all kinds since 1999. He’s covered the Tour de France, the Olympic Games, and dozens of other international cycling events. He also likes to throw himself into the fray, penning first-person accounts of cycling adventures in British Columbia, Belgium, Brazil, Costa Rica, France, and Peru among many others. Sumner, who joined the RoadBikeReview.com / Mtbr.com staff in January, 2013, has also done extensive gear testing and edited a book on cycling tips. When not writing or riding, the native Coloradoan can be found enjoying the great outdoors with his wife Lisa and daughter Cora.

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Beautify piece of art. I still like the trim, crisp lines of a steel frame and appreciate the craftsmanship of the amazing lugs. Only gripe is that asymmetric crank. I’m still not onboard with that look.